


Another Time

by cosmicsans



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Bad Puns, F/M, Gender-Neutral Frisk, I MAY START WRITING THIS AGAIN, Reader Is Considered Female, Reader Is Not Frisk, SORRYYYYYYYYY, Slow Burn, bare with me I have some crazy ideas for this one, no i mean really bad i suck at writing puns
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-05-08 10:08:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5493395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmicsans/pseuds/cosmicsans
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three years after the barrier was broken and monsters returned to the surface, you live a semi-normal life working as a journalist. Balancing a stressful job and a life is already hard enough, but then you start receiving anonymous... knock knock jokes?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Who's There?

The first message came on a cold winter night. You were sleeping soundly, curled up under a mound of blankets, until your phone buzzed beneath you. You cursed your habit of always ending up sleeping on top of your phone by tossing and turning during the night, and dug around until you found it.

Half awake, you squinted through the screen’s blinding light and read the message.

_\- Unknown 2:17am_

_“knock knock”_

You squinted again in annoyance. Was an unknown number really sending you a knock knock joke in the middle of the night? You didn’t know whether to be angry or laugh from the absurdity of it, but you picked the latter. Smiling, you rolled onto your back and tapped your fingers to your screen.

_\- 2:19am_

_“…Who’s there?”_

A small bubble in the corner of the screen popped up immediately. The anonymous sender was typing.

_\- Unknown 2:19am_

_“pasture”_

You smiled lazily, wondering if you had heard the joke before. You knew you had little time to sleep before work, but you continued to play along anyway.

_\- 2:20am_

_“Pasture who?”_

Again they began typing almost immediately. While you waited, you wondered who this person could be. Had you accidently deleted somebody’s contact information? Before you could check, a new message popped up.

_\- Unknown 2:21am_

_“pasture bed time, isnt it?”_

Despite the groan that escaped your lips, you were thrown into a fit of giggles, almost dropping the phone on your face. You couldn’t believe you were being awoken and trolled by a stranger.

_\- 2:21am_

_“Lol wtf?? Who is this?”_

You watched the minutes tick by and preoccupied yourself with a game of Tetris as you waited for their response, but none came. And every time you checked, there was never any bubble to indicate they were typing.

Confused, you stared into the darkness and measured your options. You thought, maybe, it could be your friend. She loved to mess with you and make dumb jokes, but you knew she’d probably be asleep at this hour. The only time she wasn’t asleep this late at night was on Fridays when you two sometimes went out and… Oh. It hit you.

Your head throbbed as partial memories of last Friday night came flooding back. You went to a house party with your friend and met a ton of people. There was drinking, and dancing, and some puking, but you couldn’t remember much else. You must have given your number to someone there, you concluded.

Perfect. You rolled your eyes and covered your face as if to hide your embarrassment from someone watching. The first time in your life you get black out drunk, and you give your number to a stranger! Thankfully that was all you did (at least you hoped so.)

With the mystery solved, you turned your phone off, pulled the covers over your head shielding yourself from the cold, and fell back to sleep.

 

_____________________________________

 

 

The next message came on your day off work while you were browsing the aisle of monster foods at the grocery store. Surprisingly most of it was edible to humans, if not slightly disgusting. You were dunking a box of Nice Creams into your cart when you heard your phone beep inside your bag.

_\- Unknown 4:38pm_

_“knock knock”_

What, this again? You did a double take. Ah yes, you silently chuckled, everyone knows when you get drunk at a party and give a stranger your number, they’ll send you a knock knock joke sometimes. Despite the strangeness of it, you couldn’t help but be amused.

_\- 4:38pm_

_“-_- Who’s there…?”_

You rested your forearms against the shopping cart’s handle and held your phone in front of you as you kept walking down the aisle, not interested in the food any longer.

_\- Unknown 4:39pm_

_“alex”_

Alex? You wondered if there even was an Alex at the party, if that was their name.

_\- 4:39pm_

_“Alex who?”_

You stuffed your phone back into your bag as you neared the register. When it beeped you were tempted to check it, but you needed to pay and bag your groceries.

“You know these are for monsters, right?” an unenthusiastic cashier scoffed while holding up the box of Nice Cream. “I mean… you don’t look like a monster. If I were you I’d stay away from _their_ stuff _._ ” Your guts churned at the cashier’s implication, as if monsters were less than humans.

“I’ve actually had them before! They’re pretty good, and the nice sayings on the stick cheer me up.” You smiled as sweetly as you could, “maybe you should try one?”

The cashier nearly gagged before scowling at you and shoving you your groceries.

You couldn’t believe the amount of unnecessary hatred some people had for monsters. Actually, you could believe it, but you wished the monsters were welcomed more on the surface. After all, it was the humans’ fault they were banished to the Underground for so long. But some people were just still stuck in their old ways.

As you lugged your bags to your car, you almost forgot about the stranger texting you. After quickly throwing the groceries in your trunk and cranking up the heater, you fished your phone out of your bag and read the punch line.

_\- Unknown 4:39pm_

_“alex the questions around here.”_

You huffed out a weak laugh.

_\- 4:50pm_

_“So is that your name? Alex?”_

You watched the snowfall outside and played with the radio as you waited for what felt like much longer than a minute.

_\- Unknown 4:52pm_

_“heh didn’t u hear what i just said”_

_“alex the questions around here”_

_“get it?”_

Of course they weren’t going to make this easy. You tapped your thumbs against the steering wheel and hummed along to the music, thinking of a response.

_\- 4:51pm_

_“Ok... Tell me your name then.”_

_“(Not a question btw)”_

Again you waited, and waited, until you felt silly sitting in the parking lot waiting for a response that would never come. You were strangely disappointed as you drove home, quite liking the small distraction the texts brought you. And as you watched the sun set over the horizon you secretly hoped another “knock knock” would come soon.

 

_____________________________________

 

 

A week passed, and after a long day of work you flopped down on your couch and checked your phone for any new messages, but there weren’t any. As the week went by you could feel your heart speed up every time your phone buzzed, but were always slightly saddened to see it was never the stranger. Sometimes it was your friends asking what you were up to (which was always work.) Sometimes it was your phone company annoying you about the bill that was due. And sometimes it was your boss checking on the paper you still hadn’t written.

Sighing, you adjusted yourself on the lumpy sofa and opened your laptop. You only had a few days left to write up an entire report on monster culture, and you still hadn’t interviewed a single monster yet. It wasn’t that you were afraid of monsters or anything, but the thought of writing about their culture and upsetting them terrified you. Not to mention you could lose your job if you messed it up. A human writing about monsters could be tricky, especially with the tension between the races.

Tapping the keys and watching the line on the empty document blink filled you with anxiety as the minutes ticked by. Maybe you could take a break and work on the report tomorrow, you still had a few days left anyway right?

Before you could stop yourself you were scrolling through your social media accounts. By recommendation of your co-workers you had joined UnderNet recently, and the former monster only website was now booming with humans. You had to give the monsters a lot of credit; they were so much more accepting of humans than humans were of monsters.

It’d been almost three years since the day the Underground’s barrier was broken, and humans were still adjusting to the monsters presence on the surface. You remember the day vividly, especially because you lived right in the infamous Mt Ebott’s shadow.

Hundreds of years after the fabled war between humans and monsters, people were beginning to believe the stories were just that – stories.

Everyone knew the stories of course. Humans and monsters tolerated each other for quite some time; some were even allies and got along peacefully. But as time went on, the humans’ fear of the sheer power monsters possessed grew immensely. Not even the magic of the most powerful warlocks combined could compare to a single Boss Monster. Out of fear alone the humans forced the monsters into the underground.

Even you stopped believing in the stories as you got older, you admit. As a kid you were almost pressured to climb Mt Ebott yourself, but chickened out when you saw just how daunting it was up close.

Thankfully the brave child Frisk made it out of the Underground alive with thousands of ecstatic monsters in toe. No one is quite sure how they managed to break the barrier, but somehow the small kid did it. Now, with some help, they served as the official ambassador for monsters.

You continued scrolling through the sea of monster selfies, Mettaton videos, and memes you didn’t quite understand until deciding to make a post of your own:

_Any monster(s) up for an interview about your culture and life living in the Underground? PM me and we can work out the details!_

You wondered if setting up an interview over social media was unprofessional. Maybe it was, but it was better than not having a report to turn in at all.

The buzz of your phone pulled you away from your laptop screen. Was it a private message from UnderNet already? No, your heart skipped a beat to see text from an unknown number instead.

_\- Unknown 6:51pm_

_“knock knock”_

Your stomach did a backflip as a giddy smile spread across your face.

_\- 6:51pm_

_“Hmm, who’s there?”_

You couldn’t tear your eyes off the screen.

_\- Unknown 6:51pm_

_“gorilla”_

The only noise in your living room was the quick clicking coming from the phone as you typed.

_\- 6:52pm_

_“Gorilla whoooo?”_

You couldn’t help but smirk as you awaited the cheesy joke.

_\- Unknown 6:52pm_

_“gorilla me a burger would ya?”_

A snort escaped you and you shook your head in mild disbelief.

_\- 6:52pm_

_“lol you’re gonna have to do better than that next time! ;)”_

You were only kind-of joking.

_\- Unknown 6:53pm_

_“whaatt”_

_“they love that one over at grillby’s”_

That name sounded familiar to you. You thought Grillby’s was the name of a new bar downtown, but you couldn’t be sure.

_\- 6:54pm_

_“When are you going to tell me who this is?”_

You hoped you weren’t pushing it too far by asking again.

_\- Unknown 6:55pm_

_“buddy u don’t remember me?”_

The giddiness inside you dissipated. Damn! You were hoping this wouldn’t happen. Maybe you _had_ met them at the party and didn’t remember after all.

_\- 6:55pm_

_“Um…no. What was your name again?”_

You crossed your fingers and hoped the stranger wouldn’t disappear like every other time you asked for their name.

_\- Unknown 6:56pm_

_“the joke masteeerrrrrr.”_

Of course! You rolled your eyes.

_\- 6:57pm_

_“But how did you get my number??”_

_\- Unknown 6:57pm_

_“i found it.”_

What? You wondered if you’d left your number lying around anywhere, but why would you? This had to be a prank being played by someone you knew, you concluded. But you pressed on anyway.

_\- 6:58pm_

_“You just… found it?”_

_\- Unknown 6:58pm_

_“heh yup”_

_\- 6:58pm_

_“So, I’ve never met you then?”_

_\- Unknown 6:59pm_

_“not that i’m aware of”_

You let out a sigh and ran a hand through your hair. You were determined to figure out who this was, one way or another. So you asked once more.

_\- 7:00pm_

_“Well can you at least tell me your name then?”_

_“Your real name.”_

 

_____________________________________

 

 

He sent the first message on a cold winter night. Frisk was curled up next to him under the bedding that Tori made him promise to buy after the first sleepover that took place on his empty mattress. The mattress was comfy enough, but Toriel insisted that Frisk would catch a cold sleeping without any blankets, and she was probably right (she usually was.)

Sans laid his hoodie across the shivering kid and went back to scribbling in his notebook.

_Not much news to share, and nothing abnormal happening lately, good. The kid and Asgore have to go to a council meeting next week to discuss political stuff with the humans, and it should go smoothly. Will update later._

He was just about to shut his notebook and call it a night when a small piece of paper slipped out from between the crinkled pages and floated to the floor. Staring up at Sans was a phone number written in his own scribbled writing. If he had a heart, it would have stopped.

Sans knew all of his notes back to front, and if he wanted to he could probably have recited his whole notebook without even looking at it. Of course new things were added sometimes, things he’s never seen before, but he hadn’t found anything new in such a long time.

This phone number was definitely new.

A shiver ran down Sans’ spine as he picked the paper up and examined it. There was nothing on the back, just the lone phone number waiting to be dialed. He shook his head in disbelief and furrowed his brow bone. How long had this been there he wondered?

The feeling of being watched made Sans turn around and see Frisk’s sleepy eyes looking up at him.

“Huh, don’t worry about me, buddo,” he answered their questioning face, “I’m just not tired.”

Sans shrugged and shoved the note in his shorts’ pocket, but Frisk wasn’t convinced. Despite their age, Frisk was one of the smartest people Sans had ever met, and they always seemed to know when something was wrong.

His grin widened, “heh, you always see _right through me_ don’t ya, kid?” He gave Frisk a wink and patted them once on the head before heading towards the door. “I’m fine, really. Now rest those bones or Tori will kill me for keeping you up.” He shut the door behind him before Frisk could protest.

Sans quietly shuffled his slippered feet down the stairs, and took a seat on the last step next to a fluffy white dog gnawing on one of Papyrus’ many bones from under the sink. He patted the mutt’s fluff, dug the note out of his pocket, un folded it, and flattened it across his femur.

He wondered if he should even bother the person on the other end of the number. Not only did they probably not know who he was, but Sans could unintentionally mess up the timeline after it had been going so well.

But, in another life, he saved the number for a reason: It could lead him to the truth. So Sans swallowed his fears and pulled his phone from his pocket.

With hesitating fingers he typed out the first text.

_\- 2:17am_

_“knock knock”_

 

_____________________________________

 

In frustration, you threw your phone down on the couch. It had been half an hour since you asked the stranger what their name was, and you expected not to receive a text after so long. Disappointed, you went about the rest of your evening.

You struggled to write more of your report, and gave up after spewing out a few awful paragraphs, opting instead to order Chinese takeout. Then you ate orange chicken and noodles until the sky turned black, and the only light in your apartment was the flash of the game show you were watching on TV.

But your mind would not leave the mysteriously anonymous texter. The thought of blocking the number crossed you, but it seemed silly – it’s not like they were causing you any harm. You just wanted to get to the bottom of it and put your mind at ease. It was probably just a friend teasing you anyway, wasn’t it?

Later that night you took a shower and let steam fill your lungs as you washed the day away. Being a journalist was something you had always wanted, but yet it was so stressful. Sometimes you wondered if it was even worth it, but you didn’t really have a choice. You were lucky to find the job when you did; with all the monsters coming to the surface it was almost impossible to find an opening anywhere lately.

One day, you hoped to actually visit the Underground and journal about it, too. But that was just a dream. Unfortunately, when all the monsters exited the mountain, the tunnel caved in on itself. At least there wasn’t a way humans could force the monsters in there again.

Exhausted, you crawled into bed, shut your eyes, and listened to the wind outside howl you a song. You almost imagined someone humming a tune along with it…

And then your phone dinged.

_\- Unknown 10:36pm_

_“Sans.”_

_____________________________________

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay let me start of by saying this is my first ever fic and I am so totally excited. I already have a thousand great ideas for this baby.
> 
> Also, since this is my first fic and I *really* want to improve my writing, please feel free to tell me how I'm doing and give me any constructive criticism you'd like.
> 
> This fic was inspired by my favorite Dragon Age fanfic called "Message Sent" by Aicosu which you can read here: http://archiveofourown.org/works/3457130/chapters/7585658
> 
> Last but not least, the music that helped me buckle down and finish writing and editing this chapter tonight: https://determination-ut.bandcamp.com/releases (it's seriously amazing)
> 
> Please leave comments if you guys like it so far! (I hope you do D:)


	2. The Interview

The brisk air chilled you to the bone and whipped your hair around your face as you rushed along the crowded street. You pulled your knit hat down tightly over your ears and zigzagged through the swarm of people, worried you’d be late.

Thankfully, the post you made on UnderNet the previous evening captured the attention of two enthusiastic monsters that practically begged you to write an interview about them. Now, under their recommendation, you were heading to a diner a few blocks away from your apartment to meet them.

It probably wasn’t the best idea to schedule the interview on one of the busiest shopping days of the week, but you had no other options. Your report was due in only a few days, and you needed to get it done. Pushing past street performers and people carrying about a dozen shopping bags each, you finally neared the diner.

MTT Diner was flashy sort of joint, named and styled after Mettaton himself. Apparently the robot was some sort of idol to the monsters in the Underground, and when they all came to the surface Mettaton ate up the spotlight. Now he had TV shows, restaurant chains, a clothing line, even his own brand of MTT toothpaste (though you didn’t think he even had teeth.)

Big, bold lights flashed on top of the building spelling out “MTT DINER ALWAYS OPEN!” Along with an image of Mettaton’s rectangular form giving you a thumbs up. You’d never eaten here before, but you’d always been able to see it a mile away in every direction. Shivering, you pushed open the doors and stepped inside the bustling diner.

Inside was just as you expected to be. Mettaton’s face was everywhere: from the TVs playing all of his shows simultaneously, to the walls, which were lined with photographs of him next to other human celebrities. You even thought you saw someone eating a steak shaped like his face, but it was probably just your mind playing tricks on you.

The place was packed to the brim with monsters and humans alike. You had to stand on your tiptoes just to see as you searched the heads in booths lined against the wall. Finally you found who you were looking for as you came across a scaly green head with curly golden pigtails, and a purple head with fluffy ears. They told you their names were Bratty and Catty.

It wasn’t hard to remember who was who, as Catty was literally a cat. Bratty looked more like an alligator, or was it a crocodile? You could never really tell the difference.

When they saw you their eyes lit up like a flame, and Bratty scooted out of the booth to embrace you in a hug.

“Like, _oh my god_ you’re finally here!”

“Isn’t this place ah- _mazing?”_ Catty chimed in while sipping on a soda.

“It’s definitely one of the more interesting restaurants I’ve been to.” You laughed shyly, “thank you for meeting me here.”

“No! It’s totally our pleasure!” You slipped into the booth across from the girls. “We’re just so excited you want to do an interview about us!” Bratty said.

“Yeah, like, we’ve never been interviewed before. I mean – we’re the coolest monsters around, right? We even met Frisk!”

“You guys met Frisk?” Maybe your story would turn out even better than you’d hoped.

Catty twisted a manicured claw in her hair, “Of course! So, we used to own this shop right?”

“In this, like, dark alleyway next to MTT Resort and Hotel—“

“And then Frisk came along and bought this, like, creepy old gun—“

“Yeah! We found it in the dump!”

“But, I mean, they probably didn’t even use it. I think they just liked to collect things.”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down!” You giggled with the girls and quickly jotted notes down on a pad of paper. Then you made the mistake of asking them what they thought about Mettaton, to which they almost climbed on the table to profess their love of the robot.

You scribbled furiously to keep up with the monster’s as they told story after story. You hadn’t even realized how long the waiter was taking to take your order until he finally appeared.

The waiter was another feline-like monster, with a huge smile plastered on his face despite the bags under his eyes. “Hi there! Welcome to MTT Diner, new home of the Glamburger! What can I get you all today—oh… you two, again.”

“Heyyy Burgerpants!”

Bratty motioned to you, “this is our new friend!”

“She’s, like, doing an interview about us and stuff!”

Burgerpants’ eye twitched as he turned toward you.

“You guys know each other?” You asked.

His smile faltered before collapsing completely. “Unfortunately,” he sighed and turned back towards Bratty and Catty. “Can I get you guys something, or are you just here to torture me?”

“Glamburgers!” The girls sang in unison.

You thought about ordering a Glamburger as well, but you didn’t think you’d be able to eat the bun, which was covered in sequins. “I’ll have the Starfait.”

“Coming right up.” Burgerpants sulked away.

While waiting for your food, you asked the monsters more questions. You learned about Hotland, the town they lived in; and the CORE, which powered the entire Underground. Everything the girls told you sounded like a fairy tale, which probably wasn’t wrong considering how wildly they talked about everything.

Suddenly, a vibration in your pocket distracted you. While Bratty and Catty were ranting and raving about a wolf that constantly threw ice down a river, you slid your phone out and glanced at it.

_\- Sans 1:08pm_

_“heyyy buddy it’s your ol’ pal sans”_

_“whatcha up to?”_

You covered your mouth to hide the smile creeping to your lips. Finally you learned the stranger’s name, Sans. You still didn’t understand how this “Sans” got your number, but you’d let it slide— for now. Texting him was just too much fun. You hid the phone under the table like a schoolgirl and texted him back.

_\- 1:09pm_

_“Work, kind of. And lunch!”_

As if on cue, a glass filled with colorful fruit and cream was placed in front of you. Burgerpants then handed the girls their glittery burgers and said, “please don’t bother me for anything else.”

Bratty bit into her food, “you’re missing out. Glamburgers taste even better up here!”

“Totally. Starfait is good too, but we come here, like, every week just for a Glamburger.

“But this is our third time this week…”

“Shh! Bratty!” Catty giggled with a mouthful of meat and sequins.

You laughed with them and bit into a juicy piece of starfruit when your phone buzzed against the table.

_\- Sans 1:11pm_

_“yum. save some for me.”_

_\- 1:11pm_

_“Of course :) You like parfaits right?”_

_\- Sans 1:12pm_

_“not my favorite but i’ll eat anything heh”_

_\- 1:12pm_

_“Even a burger that’s covered in glue and sequins?”_

_\- Sans 1:12pm_

_“are you at MTT diner?”_

_\- 1:13pm_

_“Yeah. Have you been here?”_

_\- Sans 1:14_

_“my bro loves that place”_

_“I prefer grillby’s burgs”_

For some reason, it felt strange that this stranger you’d been texting the past week or so had been to the same place you were at. Of course he’d been to MTT Diner, almost everyone in town had except for you, until today. But it felt like you were connected to this stranger in some small way. Maybe he’d sat at this very table, you thought.

You took a bite of your Starfait and slid your phone back into your pocket. The girls were gabbing to you about Mettaton again, and you needed to get rid of the distractions to finish the interview.

 

____________________

 

“Hey bro, wanna grab some lunch?” Sans asked while shoving his phone in his pocket.

“Sans, you lazybones!” Papyrus practically yelled. Actually, that was his normal voice. “We’re supposed to be going to Undyne’s for our cooking lesson!”

Undyne was teaching Papyrus _and_ Sans how to cook now. Though, Sans mostly just watched and taste-tested everything. It was a learning experience for everybody, now that Undyne was trying to cook without burning the house down. Alphys installed a sprinkler system though, just in case, it was her house too.

“Aw c’mon. We still have a _skele-ton_ of time. Howzabout a quick stop at your favorite place, MTT Diner?”

Papyrus glared at Sans for his quick use of a pun, before his eyes lit up with stars at the mention of the diner. “A Glamburger does sound good right now! Okay fine, you win! But I, The Great Papyrus, will not be so easily defeated next time!”

“No way bro, I just got lucky.” he winked at his brother, “follow me, I know a shortcut.”

____________________

 

The spoon clanked on the glass as you finished scraping out the last bit of cream. Finally the lunch crowd was fizzling out, and it became much easier for you to hear. Despite that, Bratty and Catty were enthusiastically telling you a story, in high volume, about how Burgerpants got his name.

“Will you two _please_ stop telling everyone that story?!” He sighed and handed you the bill, then plastered another forced smile on his face. “Thanksy! Have a _Fabu-ful_ day!”

“Thank you so much for this, ladies. You have no idea how badly I needed this interview,” you said.

“Like, it’s our pleasure!”

“Yeah! We should meet up again soon, this was wicked fun!”

You signed the bill, making sure to give the waiter a large tip, and handed the girls your phone to exchange numbers.

“Ooh! You got a text!” Bratty exclaimed, while typing her number into your contacts. You nearly snatched it out of her hand.

_\- Sans 1:43pm_

_“you never told me your name”_

____________________

 

The air shifted around Sans and Papyrus for just a moment before they were standing in front of the flashing lights of MTT Diner.

“I still do not know how you do that brother!” Papyrus said.

“Heh, lots of practice.”

The skeleton brothers made their way into the diner and sat at the almost empty bar. Sans thanked the fact they had just missed the lunch rush. He knew a lot of humans didn’t like monsters much, but skeletons? Having no flesh or blood made many humans weary of them, even though humans were part skeleton, too.

Also, it made it easier for Sans to search for what he was looking for – the person on the other end of the phone.

He scanned the booths as Papyrus ordered a Glamburger for himself. “Sans, what do you want?”

“Uh… I’ll take a…” He remembered what they were having, “a Starfait.”

Well, that narrowed his options down. Sans scanned every table searching for hints of Starfait, but with so few items on the menu, more than a couple of the tables in the diner had a glass of the fruity treat on them.

There was one table that stood out most to Sans. Though, it might have been because of the two ladies laughing quite loudly.

“And then his pants fell down!”

“And there were, like, Glamburgers in them!”

Sans recognized the monsters, Bratty and Catty. He remembered when Frisk put off their dinner date to run down the alleyway and talk to the girls in their shop. And then came back with an empty revolver and a bag of half eaten junk food.

He spied the empty parfait glass on their table. Was it Bratty or Catty whom the number belonged to? He wondered what they could have said or done to make saving their number so important to this life, but then another head poked out from the top of the booth.

“Be right back, bro.” He said to Papyrus, who was absolutely entranced in whichever one of Mettaton’s shows was being played on a screen behind the bar.

Sans walked over to the other side of the diner and sat at a table against the back corner. At this angle he could see Bratty and Catty’s whole booth, and who was sitting across from them.

It was a human. She was smiling from ear to ear, and tapping a pen against a small notebook while listening to the monster ladies tell their story. He could clearly see now that the empty glass was hers, as he watched her pluck the last piece of fruit from the glass into her mouth.

He watched the girl for a while, wondering if this was even the right person. But when she passed her phone across the table, he realized what he should have done the moment he got there.

Sans took his phone out and texted the number. The moment he hit send, there was a ding.

“Ooh! You got a text!”

He watched the girl blush as she snatched the phone out of Bratty’s claws before smiling down at it.

And then his own phone rattled against his palm.

_\- ??? 1:44pm_

_“Maybe, if you’re lucky, I’ll tell you one day ;)”_

Sans just couldn’t wrap his head around it. He didn’t know who he expected to find, but why was this seemingly random, normal human girl so important? Maybe he’d written down the wrong number, he thought, or accidently put the number in his notebook by mistake.

His notebook wasn’t just any average notebook that he wrote notes in though. Sans kept track of every timeline with his notes. Everything he’d ever put in there helped him “remember,” in a way.

Whenever there was a reset, Sans’ memory was wiped clean. But with the little determination he had, Sans had the chance to SAVE items and bring them into his next life. So, he SAVEd his notes and read them when he forgot everything. It helped him understand the multiverse better, and drew him one step closer to finding his other brother.

So what was it about this girl that was so important to his quest?

He watched the girl intently while she tied a scarf around her neck. He watched every flick of her eyes, every hand motion, trying to determine if she was “different,” like Frisk was.

Sans knew the moment he met the kid that something was off about them. It didn’t take him long to realize Frisk could manipulate the timelines more than most. Was this human like that, too?

Just as Sans was about to text the number again, to make sure he had the right person, Papyrus stormed over and pulled his attention away from her. “Sans! What are you doing way over here?”

He shrugged, “just taking a break.”

“What!? But you’re not even working!”

“Oh. I guess you’re right, huh.”

“Of course I’m right! Now come eat so we aren’t late to Undyne’s!”

Sans swung his legs out from under the table and hopped off the chair. Papyrus pushed Sans along, ushering him back to their spot at the bar, but before they got too far Sans looked back over his shoulder at an empty booth.

The girl was gone.

____________________

 

The scent of cigarette smoke made you crinkle your nose up in disgust when you exited the diner. Burgerpants was leaning up against the wall, blowing smoke rings into the cold air.

“Err…” he paused when he saw you, “I’m on a break.”

You walked past him and headed down the sidewalk, in the direction of your apartment. With every breath you took, little clouds of warm air formed in front of your face. It was even colder now than it was before you got to the diner, and you knew you couldn’t walk several blocks shivering like this.

You stuck your hand out for a cab as it neared you, and rushed inside to bathe in the warmth of the heater.

The cab driver must have been freezing too, as they wore a large black coat with the hood up, enveloping their face. “Tra la la,” they sang. “Where to?”

You told the driver your apartment’s address.

They were quiet almost the whole way to your apartment, but as you neared your block, they spoke up. “Tra la la,” they sang again. “Beware of the man who came from the other world.”

“What?” You asked, “what man?” but they wouldn’t answer you. The car became unusually silent.

Well, cab drivers were usually sort of odd anyway, you thought, and brushed it off.

When the car stopped in front of your building the driver finally broke the silence. “Tra la la, we’re here!” You paid them and headed inside, shivering from the cold, and the creepy vibes crawling up your back.

 

 

\- _Sans 4:20pm_

_“i have an idea”_

Sans texted you while you were working on writing your report the next day. Surprisingly, with the help of two new monster friends, it was coming along well. You tore your fingers away from your keyboard to reply.

_\- 4:21pm_

_“Which is?”_

_\- Sans 4:21pm_

_“i tell you my favorite joke, and you tell me your name”_

_\- 4:23pm_

_“Lol what are you a comedian or something?”_

_\- Sans 4:23pm_

_“among other things”_

_“so, howzabout it?”_

You could use the distraction. Even your days off work were filled with— well, more work.

It wasn’t like you needed to hide your name from this guy either, you just wanted to mess with him.

_\- 4:24pm_

_“Alright let’s hear it.”_

_\- Sans 4:25pm_

_“ok but watch out”_

_“my jokes are SANSational ;]”_

_\- 4:27pm_

_“Lmao wow”_

_\- Sans 4:28pm_

_“ok here it is:”_

_“what do you call a fake noodle?”_

_“…an impasta”_

_“heh my brother taught me that one. im so proud”_

No matter how bad the joke was, Sans still managed to make you smile at it. You wondered for a moment what it would be like to be friends with Sans, but brushed that thought away. You didn’t even know this guy. You didn’t know who he was or what he looked like or how old he was. All you knew was that his name was Sans, he liked to tell jokes, and now, that he had a brother.

_\- 4:31pm_

_“Haha that’s a pretty good one”_

_“Guess I gotta tell you my name now huh?”_

_\- Sans 4:32pm_

_“yup. rules are rules pal.”_

You leaned against your window seal, passing your phone back and forth between hands.

The winter wind had finally died down, and you opened your window to let the noises from the street float inside. People were walking below your apartment building wearing heavy coats and scarves, but spring was finally approaching, you could tell.

It was such a beautiful day, you noted as you watched the sun lower in the sky. Birds were chirping and flowers were just beginning to bloom. On days like these, you wished you weren’t caged inside, working.

You averted your gaze from the window, and took a deep breath of the late winter air before replying to Sans.

_\- 4:35pm_

_“My name is Chara.”_

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas and happy (almost) new year everyone! 
> 
> Thank you, thank you, SO much to everyone who subscribed, kudos'd, bookmarked, or commented on my first chapter - it really filled me with determination to keep writing!
> 
> The next chapter might take awhile unless I finish it before the new year, I'm going to be busy and then will be on vacation until Jan. 7th, but I promise to get it out as soon as I get back!
> 
> And again, if you want to give me any constructive criticism, please do! I love to read any comments I receive!
> 
> I hope you all enjoy~~~~


End file.
